Boston Terror Case

Boston Terror Case

JUNE 3--The Massachusetts man shot and killed yesterday by antiterrorism agents planned to behead a police officer with knives he had just purchased on Amazon, according to a court filing that details the suspect’s alleged intention to “go after” the “boys in blue.”

Usaamah Rahim, 26, was shot by an FBI agent and a Boston police officer after he pulled out a Marine fighting knife (seen at right) when approached by investigators outside a CVS pharmacy.

In a U.S. District Court complaint filed today against David Wright, an associate of Rahim, federal investigators said that when one officer told Rahim to drop his weapon, he replied, “You drop yours.” Rahim then reportedly advanced on the investigators and “he was shot by law enforcement.”

The criminal complaint reveals that the FBI had been investigating Rahim and Wright for “several federal criminal offenses, including terrorism offenses.” The government investigation has included the interception of phone calls between the men and the obtaining of Amazon records showing Rahim’s recent purchase of three fighting knives and a knife sharpener.

In a May 29 phone conversation, Rahim told Wright that he “just got myself a nice little tool” that was good for “carving wood and like, you know, carving sculptures... and you know...” Wright later told Rahim that “something was ‘like thinking with your head on your chest,’” which prompted both men to burst out laughing, reported FBI Agent J. Joseph Galietta, who noted that, “I believe this is a reference to the practice of some foreign terrorist organizations to behead targets and place their heads on their chests in propaganda videos.”

Following yesterday’s shooting of Rahim, Wright spoke with FBI agents and reportedly confessed to the beheading plot, which he discussed with Rahim and a third person during a meeting Sunday on a Rhode Island beach. The plot called for the victim to be killed in a state other than Massachusetts.

Two hours before Rahim was killed yesterday, he spoke with Wright on the phone, revealing that his plans had changed. Saying that, “I can’t wait that long man,” Rahim told Wright that, “I’m going to be on vacation right here in Massachusetts...I’m just going to ah go after them, those boys in blue. Cause, ah, it’s the easiest target and, ah, the most common is the easiest for me.”

According to Agent Galietta, Rahim’s reference to “going on vacation” was shorthand for “committing violent jihad.” During yesterday's conversation, Galietta reported, Rahim revealed to Wright his plan to “randomly kill police officers in Massachusetts” on Tuesday or Wednesday of this week.

Apprised of Rahim’s plans, Wright allegedly counseled him to destroy his phone and “wipe” his laptop computer in advance of the attack.

Wright, who reportedly told federal investigators that he “agreed with Rahim’s plan and supported it,” has been charged with conspiring to destroy evidence in a bid to thwart a federal investigation. Wright, seen above being taken into custody, was scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon on the felony count in U.S. District Court in Boston. (6 pages)